Who is Involved in Environmental Planning and Management?
Heidi Levitzky (Environmental Officer, Global Propulsion Systems) and Simon Guan (Sustainability Programs Manager) reflect on their professional experiences with environmental planning and management at General Motors of Canada.
Questions of whom, when and how to engage stakeholders in environmental planning and management continues to grow in importance. Often those involved may have contested values, differing perceptions, and/or various understanding of the issue(s). Assessments and analyses of stakeholders, those involved or affected by the issue directly or indirectly, are valuable for gaining early feedback, potentially leading to better decisions, and ensuring democratic principles (Vogler et al., 2017). Vogler et al. (2017) identify some of the many techniques/tools (e.g., stakeholder analysis table, stakeholder grid, “3 Rs” approach: rights, risks, responsibilities) that have been developed to assist with this important, albeit challenging, aspect of environmental planning and management.